School district files lawsuit against Tustin

Tustin High School students hustle to class. The campus was originally built in the 1920s. MINDY SCHAUER, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

TUSTIN The Tustin Unified School District has filed a lawsuit against the city of Tustin, claiming that the city has delayed construction on a new elementary school and improvements to Tustin High School.

The district is asking for an injunction allowing construction and for the city to reimburse the district for the cost of the lawsuit.

"We're not seeking money. We just want to build schools," said Tustin Unified School District Board President Francine Scinto. "From our perspective, (filing a lawsuit) is absolutely the last thing we'd like to do."

According to the suit filed Thursday in Santa Ana Superior Court, the city is requiring grading plans and asking the district to pay fees it previously didn't have to pay, including $9,400 in plan check fees.

In doing so, according to the lawsuit, the city is violating state law and the city ordinances.

"The district has known that in order to develop a school they would need to process plans through the city and pull permits," said Mayor Jerry Amante. "They have refused to cooperate....This is something that every other school site has had to do and is a requirement of state law."

Councilman John Nielsen, who had not yet seen the lawsuit, said the district and city could have worked out the problems independently.

"In my view, we certainly support city schools but are not willing to violate the law," Nielsen said.

"The school district has flaunted the law. They've refused to comply with their clear legal obligations and now have the audacity to litigate the issue at expense to the taxpayers," said Mayor Jerry Amante.

The district built Tustin Ranch Elementary in 1995, Peters Canyon Elementary in 1997, Pioneer Middle School in 1999, and Ladera Elementary School in 2001, according to the claim.

"We built four schools in Tustin Ranch, and haven't had these issues there," said TUSD spokesman Mark Eliot. "The past year, it's like jumping through hoops."

"It's costing the district money and time, which would be better spent on schools and children," Eliot said.

Heritage Elementary School, at 15400 Landsdowne Road, will be built on 10 acres on the former Tustin Marine base, now called Tustin Legacy.

"Tustin is one of the fastest growing school districts in Orange County," Scinto said. "I think the public deservedly wants to see its schools built."

The district already has to get approvals from the California Department of Education, the California Office of Public School Construction, the California Department of General Services, Division of the State Architect; and the California Department of Toxic Substance Control, according to the claim.

As of Friday, according to City Manager William Huston, the city is awaiting revisions on plans for Heritage Elementary School. Then, the city will issue a grading permit. The city also is asking for a landscaping maintenance agreement and a water quality management agreement for the space along Red Hill Avenue.

If construction doesn't start soon on Heritage Elementary School, the school district could lose the right to build from the Department of Education, according to the claim.

A new quad and science building are planned for Tustin High School at 1171 El Camino Real. The campus was originally built in the 1920s.

"The city is very flexible in the review of projects so long as the basic goal is achieved – the protection of the traveling public, street rights-of-way, and downstream properties," Huston said in the e-mail.

Tustin High School students hustle to class. The campus was originally built in the 1920s. MINDY SCHAUER, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Tustin High School's chemistry lab, built in the 1950s, still has the original chairs. The school district is planning to replace the building with a state-of-the-art facility. MINDY SCHAUER, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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